


The Whole Sky (Manten)

by MidoriKurenaiYume



Series: Silver Moon [2]
Category: Fate/Zero, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Betaed, Car Accidents, Childbirth, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dialogue, Domestic Fluff, Drama, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Feels, Friendship, Implied Sexual Content, Love, Romance, Slice of Life, Some Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2020-10-27 12:27:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20760353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidoriKurenaiYume/pseuds/MidoriKurenaiYume
Summary: Missing scenes from the epilogue of To The Beginning, tying up all loose ends, for all characters.Set after chapter 49 and mostly during chapter 50.





	The Whole Sky (Manten)

**Author's Note:**

> The scenes are in chronological order, starting at the end of chapter 49 of To The Beginning. Obviously, it won't make any sense whatsoever if you don't read TTB first, as the characters undergo quite a change during that story :P
> 
> Thank you so much to my friend HiddenCamellia for helping out with a scene for this collection, and thank you so much to Jolanikati for editing!!!! :D :D :D
> 
> Title: from a Kalafina song, B-side of their 10th single 'To The Beginning' and also part of the album 'Consolation'. The songs' lyrics are used to divide the various scenes, and credit for translating them goes to the canta-per-me forum ;)

…

…

...

...

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

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_Shining through a thin branch was the future that forgot to bloom_

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

The extreme pallor of Mrs. Uruk’s face shocked the personnel at the hospital as she rushed inside, not paying any heed to the press’s crowd she had just crossed to reach the doors.

Her features were rigidly controlled, preventing strangers from reading her expression, but her eyes were unable to mask her deep anguish.

She should have worn sunglasses to hide it; she should have waited for the limousine to bring her to the hospital through the secondary entrances; even though she had not said anything to the reporters, she should have concealed her emotions better in front of them.

But in this moment, she couldn’t care less about any of those things.

When she spoke however, even though her voice was sharp, she managed to sound sufficiently collected, making sure no one would dare question her or delay her in reaching her objective.

“Please be so kind as to take me to my husband.”

The doctors and the nurses could not mistake her seriousness and were not foolish enough to underestimate her tone of authority, and she was quietly escorted to the room where her husband was.

Heart beating deafeningly in her chest, Arturia followed them, her mind in turmoil.

This was all her fault.

They had come back to Japan from the Middle East – after spending several months between Europe and Africa – merely a couple of weeks before, and both she and Gilgamesh had intended to take a few days off to relax; however, they had first had to conclude one last deal that would stabilize their growing empire.

To close the deal, it was necessary to go to another city in Japan. Gilgamesh had wanted them to go together, but Arturia, as much as she disliked being separated from her husband, had disagreed. She had suggested for him to go on his own; he had to meet a few people and obtain the necessary information for the deal, which he would communicate to her on the phone, and at the office she would finalize everything.

By dividing their tasks they would save time and when he came back with the necessary signatures, the deal would already be concluded and they could begin their holiday without delay. The solution she proposed was swifter and more efficient, even though it had the disadvantage of them having to separate for a little while.

Gilgamesh had not been happy, but Arturia had been rather persuasive in insisting that it meant that they would have more days off together – especially considering that it was close to their birthdays – and he had ultimately relented, albeit reluctantly.

At the beginning, everything had gone smoothly. His meeting had been direct and concise, and he had given Arturia all the data she needed to finish negotiating the deal before telling her that he was on his way back.

She had just completed everything at the office as well, preparing to leave to go home and anticipating the delightful evening that expected her with Gilgamesh as soon as he got back, when she had received a phone call from the police.

Her husband had been in a serious accident, and had been hospitalized.

Before she had even had the time to properly register that information, she had seen the images on the news panels in the streets of the city. Watching the video of Gilgamesh’s car as it stopped at the red light when suddenly another car slammed into his from behind, crushing them both, had been more than she could stand, and she had broken into a run, finding her own car and driving to the hospital as fast as she could without going over the speed limit.

After Iri had been discharged, Arturia had hoped to never again need to rush to the hospital for any reason, but it seemed that it was not to be.

Her husband had been in an accident, and it had all happened because she had insisted he go on his own.

_She_ had forced him to go, and the only reason why she hadn’t started screaming yet was that she had heard the police on the phone assure her that it had not been life-threatening.

That did not mean that she was any less distraught about the entire ordeal.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

She watched him closely, her hand holding his firmly, unwilling to let go for even a second.

His crimson eyes stared back at her, an eyebrow raised at her because of her strangely open display of affection, especially since the nurses were still in the room. He did not mind it at all, but he knew that Arturia was usually much more reserved, and it was plain to see that anxiety and worry were what had made her forgo her normal behaviour, even earlier when Enkidu had come to see him as well.

Now that it was only them again – with a few nurses – he knew his wife well enough to be able to read the deep _guilt_ in her eyes, and he wasn’t going to tolerate it.

Therefore, he waited for them to be alone, before casually informing her, “I am extremely glad you weren’t with me on this trip, my love.”

Her expression did not change, only a flicker of confusion briefly crossing her features, and he squeezed her hand ever so slightly.

“The entire car was destroyed by the mongrel who crashed into me, and the driver’s seat was spared merely by chance,” he calmly told her, ignoring her slight quiver. He stared at her, straight in the eye though, not allowing her to miss the intensity in his following words. “If you had been with me, you would have died.”

His free hand reached forward to touch her cheek, and his eyes regarded her with infinite care. “Knowing that my dearly loved wife did not risk her life makes me feel more relieved than anything else.”

The look he was giving her made it clear that he had told her as much to make her stop blaming herself, yet at the same time made it equally clear that he had not lied nor exaggerated.

She held his gaze for a while, weighing him, until she finally huffed, some of the tension leaving her stiff shoulders, and she leaned forward to press a fleeting kiss to his lips, mindful of his injuries.

“You impossible man,” she said softly, her eyes staring at him intensely.

Her beautiful emerald green eyes had always been special for him to see, ever since the day he had first met her for the job interview and ascertained that they were striking, and right now they were speaking more loudly than ever, conveying all her worry and honest concern for him.

However, she tried to lighten the mood by changing the subject. “I think that the next time we address the press will give us a headache at the very least. They are no doubt looking forward to some shocking announcement.”

Gilgamesh smirked, knowing that she had a point.

“Indeed, they are most likely expecting the lawyers to start reading my will, dividing the empire and deciding your future already.”

Arturia froze in her seat, her tentatively smiling expression gone in a second as she stared at him in shock, but certainly not because he was speaking so nonchalantly about his possible death.

“You… wrote a will?”

Her tone was strange, as if there were ice, disbelief, uncertainty and _anger_ all mixed together in it.

Her eyes flashed at him. “How could you?”

He stared back at her, raising an eyebrow at her unusual behaviour.

“To always be prepared, Arturia–”

“How _could_ you!” she hissed, the bite in her tone taking him aback as her body shook in fury. “How _dare_ you think of writing a will without telling me anything? How _dare_ you think of your death and make plans for such a possibility _without telling me?_”

Her voice rose a little, but now it showed signs that it was about to crack. “How dare you plan ahead on your own, planning even on leaving me, and think only about the money? How _dare_ you think of what should happen after your death without considering what truly matters?”

Tears were now streaming down her cheeks, and he was stunned: the last time she had cried like this – or rather, that she had _ever_ cried – had been after their niece had been born, when Irisviel had survived childbirth and she had had a complete breakdown at the hospital.

“Do you really think I would care one bit about the money!? I have grown up poor and lived in relative poverty for years, do you really think I would care at all about that? If you died, if you were _gone_, do you really think I’d have a heart left to care about anything else!?”

Her eyes didn’t leave his for a second as she ranted, even as the tears continued to well up, but she dried them with a firm movement of her hand over her cheeks. She attempted to take a deep breath to calm herself down, but gave up after a few failed attempts.

“How could you think of writing a will without telling me about it, Gilgamesh? I know that, given our job, it’s indeed advisable and wise,” her lower lip trembled slightly, “to always be prepared in case something happens, but that still doesn’t explain why _you didn’t tell me!_”

Ignoring the IV in his arm, Gilgamesh reached forward to bring both his hands on his precious wife’s cheeks, wiping away the dampness of her last tears in spite of her reluctance at his gesture, as she still tried to hold onto her pride.

“Enkidu and I usually rewrite our wills at the end of every year,” he told her, carefully. “I planned on asking you if you wanted to do the same at the end of this year. Perhaps, however, I should have done this a little sooner.”

There was a pause, and then she gave him a short, jerking nod, and she breathed in deeply.

It meant that she agreed with him, but she was also wordlessly accepting his roundabout apology. She put her hands over his, which were still on her cheeks, and eventually inhaled deeply several times more, as if finally allowing herself to calm down.

She did not speak again until she felt that she had regained some control over herself, and her voice came out much steadier.

“It seems that I need to think about my will as well now. I will go write it as soon as you are discharged.”

He gave her a very strange and thoughtful look, before informing her bluntly, “In my will, I leave Uruk Enterprises in joint leadership to you and Enkidu; a certain sum goes to your family, another one is reserved to a charity of your choice, but everything else goes to you.”

She looked at him cautiously and with some slight uncertainty, before replying, “Gilgamesh, you don’t have to tell me what you write in your will only because you’re my husband. I’m angered by the fact that you didn’t tell me you wrote one, but I don’t really care about its contents. If you wish to keep it private, you have the right to do so.”

“But I do not have such a wish,” he smoothly pointed out, a faint smirk tilting his lips upwards. “There is nothing mysterious about what I decided.”

His blood red eyes were almost teasing, and she couldn’t escape him as he was still caressing her cheeks with his hands, therefore she opted for focusing on a detail that had struck her as odd.

Frowning slightly, Arturia asked, “Why do you give some money to charity though? You never cared very much for it.”

It was clear from his expression that he found the subject pointless to insist on, but he maintained eye contact as he curtly told her, “Indeed _I_ don’t, but _you_ do.”

When one of the nurses came in a few minutes later, she found Mrs. Uruk almost lying down in her husband’s arms – he was still in bed – and engaged in a very deep and passionate kiss with him.

She looked away and cleared her throat, politely letting them know that it was almost night time, therefore visitors were no longer allowed to remain at the hospital, and then left the room again.

Gilgamesh eventually released his wife’s delectable mouth – even though _she_ had been the one to kiss him, not that he was complaining – and gave the clock a displeased look.

“Such rules are foolish. They don’t have the power to prevent you from staying.”

But Arturia disentangled herself from his arms, gently and fleetingly touching his cheek and chest as she did so, before smiling slightly at him.

“If we use our position and power to do as we like, we are not doing anything fair. As much as I would prefer staying here with you,” her voice quivered, “especially after this accident, it’s best if we respect the hospital’s policies.”

She leaned forward, pecking him on the lips again briefly and giving him a slightly wider smile. “I will be here tomorrow morning as soon as they allow visitors inside again, and you know that Enkidu will come by to. I suspect Shirou and Rin are likely to visit you as well with the rest of the family.”

His unwillingness to let her leave was plain to see, but he knew that she wasn’t going to be swayed from her opinion, no matter how reluctant she was herself, therefore he ended up nodding, albeit very unenthusiastically.

Before she could leave, however, he indicated a closet on one side of the room.

“While I’m on leave, you’re in charge at the office,” he reminded her. “Among my personal effects there should be the documents and a few notes on what I was meaning to do once I came back.”

She nodded, understanding his request, and went through his possessions rapidly. Very little inside the car had been salvaged, since everything else had been destroyed. Not finding any papers or notes, she opened his wallet, knowing that he sometimes put pieces of paper he considered important in there.

However, she wasn’t prepared to see, in front of his ID and other documents, two photos of herself and him.

One was a smaller but exact copy of the one they had taken on the tour of the five lakes; the other one was more recent, coming from their stay in the Middle East when they had visited his mother Ninsun. Her mother-in-law had taken it sneakily, but she had then actually handed it over very willingly when Gilgamesh had sternly requested it.

She stared at the two pictures, dumbfounded.

“Gilgamesh,” her voice sounded extremely strange, as if she was trying without success to swallow a lump in her throat. “You have… pictures of us… in your wallet?”

He could not see her expression, since she was facing away from him, but he didn’t really think much of it.

“Of course I have photos together with you, my love.”

Arturia finally managed to swallow as she slowly turned around to face him.

“But… no one is allowed to come near your wallet. No one would see them.”

At this, his eyes narrowed slightly.

“And why should they be for show, Arturia? Can’t I have pictures together with my beloved wife all to myself?”

She was silent for a long while, staring between him and his wallet, before finally shaking herself. She took the documents and the folded notes, closed the wallet and put it back with his other things inside the closet.

When she was next to the door, about to leave the room, she glanced at him, giving him a bizarre, rare smile and whispered, “You will have to explain to me how you are always able to keep making me fall in love with you all over again.”

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

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*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

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_Soon time will be up as it bears a golden fruit_

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*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

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*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

Sometimes, when they finished a period full of hectic meetings and finalized a deal, they could have a weekend of rest together. It could happen that they had some travelling to do, or visit Irisviel and her large family, but it mostly involved quality time by themselves.

Gilgamesh would have been lying if he said he didn’t enjoy being able to take his time in making love to his wife – or when she insisted _she _make love to _him_ – but the part he preferred was usually afterwards.

If they weren’t too tired, they would usually lay in bed, and just talk.

Not that they didn’t talk in other occasions, but those particular moments were completely relaxed, without anything or anyone to interrupt them – their phones were turned off – and the subjects of conversation were usually about their past, sharing what they still did not know about one another. To him, it was a fascinating way to always learn something new about his lovely wife.

That was especially true since they were usually naked on those occasions, no physical barrier separating them – not even the underwear Gilgamesh could now happily choose together with Arturia, even though she sometimes made a show of complaining about it – making it much easier not to have any emotional barrier either.

Of course, this meant that his wife usually managed to find out more about him too. In particular, the evening in which she had admitted to having received baby pictures of him from Enkidu had been memorable, because Arturia was nothing if not fair, and she had bluntly explained that while she had obtained the pictures, she hadn’t _seen_ them yet, since she only wanted to do so with him present.

Gilgamesh had discovered that he did not mind the experience too much, since her reactions when looking at the various pictures had been quite amusing.

To his slight surprise, Arturia’s favourite had been one in which he and Enkidu, looking very young and tired, were covered in mud and looking directly at the camera, with the sunset in the background. She had nearly choked herself with silent laughter, not because of Enkidu’s characteristic happy grin, but because of Gilgamesh’s unapologetically smug expression.

He could not deny that he had found her mirth mildly disconcerting, but had deemed it acceptable, since _he_ was the cause of his wife’s happy laugh and sparkling eyes.

“I can play the piano a little,” she casually confessed one evening, her head resting on his chest and her hair sprawled around, basically cuddling in his arms as his fingers traced circles on the small of her back.

She wasn’t looking at him as she continued, “Not very well, but I had the opportunity to take a few basic lessons when I was living in Japan with my family. The main reason why I liked it was because it soothed Iri when I played, especially when she was sick. So I learned a few simple songs on my own, and I remember that watching me play was one of the only occasions in which my father showed enthusiasm.”

She paused briefly. “I haven’t played since my parents died though, not even when I had the opportunity to do so in college.”

Gilgamesh placed a feather-like kiss on the top of her head, and she turned slightly to meet his eyes. Hers were slightly stormy, but she did not keep her feelings behind barriers anymore when she was with him.

Her trust was hard to earn, but after such a long time together, he had finally managed to do so.

“I can play too,” he remarked, and she stared at him, both eyebrows raised in surprise. “Although I can’t say it ever was my favourite pastime. There is a piano in one of the rooms downstairs. Perhaps if we teach our children,” his fingers fleetingly passed over her still rather flat stomach, even though there was already the hint of a tiny swell, “you will also decide if you want to play again.”

As usual, he understood her. She did not associate playing the piano with entirely happy recollections of her past, but then again, the past was gone, she was in the present now. And he was swift in reminding her of opportunities of associating other, perhaps unknown, but _new_ memories to something that had brought her joy in the past, so that they could replace the unwelcome reminiscences.

His hands travelled lower as she nestled herself slightly closer to him, and he was, as always, extremely pleased to notice how there was no more uncertainty, no more hesitation and no more holding back when she was in his arms like this.

“I had chickenpox during the last year we were in England,” she continued after a brief pause. “Iri had it at the same moment. Not being able to go outside was frustrating, but I had the opportunity to spend time with my sister, and we played together a little. Iri felt too weak to play for long periods of time, but we could still talk a lot, and since I was a _very_ talkative eight-year-old, that time was extremely precious.”

Her fingers finding his arms, she traced the skin lightly, quietly enjoying the contact with leisure, before asking in curiosity, “Did you have chickenpox as well?”

Judging by his small smirk, she could guess that he had been looking forward to her asking that question, and internally groaned, while her face maintained a blank look. She was already afraid of what she was going to find out.

“Enkidu and I got it together, about two years after he came to stay with me,” he began, his small smirk growing quickly. “I had assumed it was going to be the two most uneventful weeks of my life, but we managed to fill them with extremely creative and ingenious mischief instead.” He was grinning openly now. “Of course, Mother wasn’t pleased, and after we recovered, she made sure to punish us.”

It was Arturia’s turn to smirk briefly, and Gilgamesh openly acknowledged, “She assigned us lots of housework to do, ostensibly to teach us about it, but she was rather perfidious about it: she didn’t allow us to do anything together, we were separated and forced to take care of everything on our own.”

He frowned slightly, still displeased at the memory. “One of the most severe and unbearably _boring_ punishments she ever inflicted upon us.”

Arturia chuckled, leaning closer to him in affectionate amusement, and told him, “The thought of you two being punished is an extraordinary one, and imagining you two sulking about it while doing housework is even stranger.”

He gave her a half-hearted glare, before grudgingly admitting, “It was at least with some educational purposes, for we learned about everything that needs to be done inside the house, and from then on, we did it together and rather often.” He huffed slightly. “Although my mother got far too much sadistic enjoyment out of her _teaching_.”

Arturia didn’t have any trouble in believing that, but a small glint still appeared in her eyes, making it obvious that she was holding back laughter.

“She gave you both a lesson in more ways than one,” she pointed out, cuddling closer to him and leaning her head on his chest. “And now Enkidu will get a new punishment as well,” she added, referring to the fact that they still hadn’t told him about her pregnancy.

Because of his exaggerated antics at the office to constantly tease them, they had agreed that he was going to be the last person to be told about their news. It was going to be kept a secret for as long as possible.

Feeling her drowsiness increasing, her eyelids began to fall.

Gilgamesh did not give a reply, one of his hands coming to brush her hair out of her face and caressing her locks, the slow movement starting to lull them both to sleep.

Before that could happen, however, she pulled her head up a bit and spoke again, changing the subject and asking a question.

“Gilgamesh, about your project Mana Corporations…” she began, and stared at him carefully. “Will you finally tell me why you decided to expand it so suddenly, and why on earth my office was among the first ones to be renovated?”

She suspected she already knew the answer to that, but she wanted to hear it from him. During those moments, when they were together in bed, they could be completely honest with each other, and she wanted this particular point to be clarified.

He sighed, somewhat theatrically, and smirked slowly.

“Why, dearest, I thought it was obvious.” His smirk kept widening. “You clearly loved working in the meeting room, which meant that its design was done skilfully. And anything that is advantageous for Uruk Enterprises’ productivity has to be done immediately.”

He paused briefly, before adding, imperturbable, “Of course, the thought of doing something that you would like was an incentive.”

Arturia couldn’t explain what it was about his bluntness that it made it so that _she_ was the one who ended up blushing at his unexpected confession, but she still managed to raise an eyebrow in a sufficiently dignified manner.

“You can claim it was for my sake, but this only means that you are acknowledging to be more thoughtful than anyone else gives you credit for.”

He pulled her closer, slightly irritated at having almost been labelled _attentive_.

“That’s not the case, Arturia. I only do things for the people I care about.”

“Then it would mean that you’ve cared about me for far longer than you’re willing to admit,” she rapidly pointed out with a faint grin. “After all, you remembered my graduation day and sent me your congratulations, even though you were travelling across the globe before our wedding.”

She had hoped to make him lose his usual composure, but he only nuzzled her neck with a renewal of his favourite smirk.

“Why, of course, my love. Whenever it involves you, I can’t forget anything, not even if I try.”

Again he had turned the tables on her, and she was blushing once more at his outspokenness. Therefore, all she could do was send him a weak glare, and then she changed the subject.

“It’s been two years now – we should really consider scrapping the contact altogether.”

She wasn’t looking at him, but as she felt his body stiffen suddenly, she shifted slightly to be able to stare at him. He had had a similar reaction back when she had mentioned wanting a divorce, but she thought she had already clarified what she actually meant.

Apparently, that wasn’t the case. She furrowed her brow, a little confused, and examined his controlled features attentively. He concealed his thoughts very well, but could it be that… wait, did her husband perhaps believe that she wanted to _end_ their marriage?

“That doesn’t mean I want a divorce, nor that I want to leave,” she specified, hoping it would be enough to calm Gilgamesh.

It seemed as if this wasn’t a subject on which he could reason with his usual cool-headedness though, because his eyes were still observing her with serious intensity.

“Don’t insult me by doubting my words, Gilgamesh,” she added, gently but with underlying steel. “I’m being earnest when I tell you that I love you, and while it’s true that we both need our space sometimes, I’m not going anywhere… not without you.” She gave a small but earnest smile. “I’m your wife, after all.”

She immediately knew that she had made a mistake, because Gilgamesh’s eyes flashed with an undefinable emotion and he averted his gaze with a tight frown.

“Yes, you are my wife,” his tone was colourless, strange, “but I _paid_ you to become my wife.”

She could only stare at him in speechless shock for a few moments. So _this_ was the real problem: he thought she felt _trapped_ in their marriage and wanted to get to rid of the contract for that reason alone.

It took her a little while to regain her senses, and taking both him and herself by surprise, she slid forward in his arms abruptly, finding his lips and kissing him fiercely.

Pulling back, she then _glared_ at him.

“For being the CEO of the most powerful company in the world and the man I love, you can certainly be dense at times, Gilgamesh,” she informed him, some slight anger appearing in her tone. “It’s completely true that you paid me to marry you after that horrid proposal for which you didn’t even apologize – but you never paid me to _love_ you! I have _chosen_ to be with you, with all my heart, because I am _happy_ with you! I want you, and I want you _forever_, because you have become the most important person in my life – why should I _ever _wish to go anywhere else?”

She was still hovering over him, her arms on both sides of his head holding her up, and she was firmly looking him in the eye. Although his hands going to envelop her waist showed that he wasn’t unaffected by her passionate tirade, he merely raised his eyebrows at her.

“Yet you want to get rid of the contract, which is still one of the things that binds us together.”

“_Love_ is what truly binds me to you, my dear _husband_,” she hissed darkly, starting to lose her patience. “And the real reason why I want the contract gone is that we aren’t respecting it anymore, so there is no _need_ for it either.”

He stared at her, without saying anything for a few tense, ominous moments.

Then he suddenly smirked, and his hands pulled her down, making her lose her balance so that she fell on top of him, right in his arms, and he was kissing her long and hard, occasionally running his fingers through her long blond tresses.

His fierceness didn’t truly surprise her, but his suddenly switching their positions to pin her underneath him, pulling back and _grinning_ at her, definitely did.

“I should consider angering and making you believe I have doubts more often, if these are the results, Arturia.”

“You… _you!_” she panted, trying to concentrate on finding the words, but they were escaping her, especially once his lips found her neck, with which he had a real obsession. “You did this on _purpose…!_”

She could feel his wide grin against her skin, as he nibbled it and shifted so to not put weight on her belly, since he was ever mindful of the pregnancy.

“As you reminded me so nicely, I did address you the wrong way when I proposed,” he acknowledged, with incredible ease. “My apologies for it.”

Her eyes widened at his nonchalant way to express his contrition – if it could be called that – while he leaned even closer to her, fingers rapidly caressing her as he nuzzled her, completely content.

“And although your actions express your feelings most of the time, I still _adore_ hearing you declare your undying love for me so openly, my dearest.”

Every kind of protest she thought of shouting at him was forgotten in the midst of her moans of pleasure.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

_The falling snow will disappear if it knows warmth_

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

At Dianne’s delivery, even though labour lasted sixteen long hours, Arturia appeared to be rather calm, aside from the moments when contractions became too painful and she gripped Gilgamesh’s hand tightly.

Gilgamesh did not leave her side once the doctors allowed him to be in the same room and after Kariya had managed to deal with his anger long enough so that Arturia could be given painkillers.

Enkidu sometimes stuck his head inside briefly, asking Arturia how she was doing and letting them know that Ninsun was on her way too, but she was unlikely to make it within the day.

Arturia had talked quite a bit with her mother-in-law during the past few months, getting to know her and also becoming more familiar with pregnancy – and calmer about delivery – thanks to Ninsun’s excited explanations.

Kariya had been discreetly very helpful too, and Bedivere and Gawain were of course as reliable as usual, but being able to talk with a woman who was gently starting to become a mother figure to her had been surprisingly comforting. However much she wished to wait for her arrival, the blonde woman wryly hoped she would have already given birth to her grandchild by then, because the pain, as coming-and-going as it was, was exhausting her.

As hour after hour went by, she sometimes managed to doze off lightly; while she appreciated her husband’s presence, she began however to worry that he might perhaps need to leave.

When she mentioned this to him, he was absolutely incredulous.

“Why should I ever consider leaving?”

She raised an eyebrow at his disbelief, shortly reminding him, “Work.”

Gilgamesh’s arm around her shoulders had tightened its grip slightly as he rolled his eyes.

“As much as I love my job, between you and work, the choice doesn’t even need to be made. You are more precious than anything else.”

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

At Aela’s delivery, little Dianne was in the room, pulling at her father’s clothes as he held her in his arms, and asking him tearfully, or rather gurgling, why Mama was sleeping in bed even though it was daytime.

Enkidu intervened – this time he had luckily been there, together with Kariya, to deal with Gilgamesh fretting over Arturia when her water had broken – and explained to his niece that she needed to wait for her sibling, and it was best to do so outside. He showed her that there was only one door, and therefore her parents were not going to be able to leave without her seeing them.

Appeased, Dianne was docile in stumble-walking to follow him out after kissing Arturia and Gilgamesh’s cheeks, and Enkidu winked at his best friend, knowing that Irisviel, Kariya, and their children were outside too and would help him entertain the little girl for as long as it was needed.

Gilgamesh remained next to his wife, knowing that his daughter was in good hands, and when Arturia sleepily stirred as contractions began to run through her body, he tenderly brushed a few locks of her hair away from her damp skin before taking her hand and letting her squeeze it.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

At Cadwal’s delivery, Irisviel wasn’t present, because Taiga and Illya had gotten the flu and needed to be looked after at home. Kariya had used every bit of courage he possessed to calm Gilgamesh down before going home too once Enkidu arrived.

Since Gilgamesh had worked several hours more than usual during the previous week, Arturia was adamant he rest for a bit outside the room together with the already slumbering Dianne and Aela, since it was the middle of the night.

“There’s Mother with me, Gilgamesh, and should contractions start again, she will fetch you for me. But now go rest for a while.”

With extreme reluctance, he was finally forced to give in, and Ninsun could spend a few hours with her daughter-in-law, affectionately keeping her company while at the same time still attempting to convince her to model some clothes for her in the future.

She had already convinced her to model a few maternity outfits in the past, but only behind closed doors and, when Ninsun had decided to take some pictures, Gilgamesh had promptly confiscated them, so that no one beside his darling wife and himself could ever see them.

Ninsun still wasn’t ready to give up though, and planned on creating a full photo album of her family; of course not for marketing purposes but, as she kept insisting, for _artistic_ ones.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

At Maeve’s delivery, Ninsun was in the Middle East and Enkidu was in Hong Kong, while Irisviel had come to see her sister briefly and was now waiting outside the room. Kariya had let Gilgamesh in just a short while before – after dealing with his temper for over an hour – because the doctors had come to speak with both him and Arturia.

Gilgamesh saw that his wife spoke her words slowly, a bit apprehensively.

“You heard what Bedivere said.”

He had heard it, indeed. The doctor had warned them that it was likely going to be a difficult delivery, especially since the blonde woman had been quite stressed lately and it wasn’t helping her conditions at all, therefore it was best to try for another kind of birth.

Gilgamesh would never admit that he was worried, but he knew that his fatigued wife was likely to be much more worried than he was.

“I did.” Making her lean into his arms, as he was sitting behind her in the bed and holding her against his chest, he pulled her closer and kissed her cheek chastely. “A caesarean section is probably the safest option.”

She nodded pensively, pleased that he agreed with her. It was going to leave a small scar, but it was hardly of consequence when the safety of their child was involved. Her hand caressed her large belly, and a slight smile tilted her lips up.

“Sakura will be happy,” she mused, thinking of the middle name they had chosen for their soon-to-be-born daughter.

“The girl has indeed proven to be worthy of acknowledgement,” he replied, touching her lips with his. “And her behaviour during the past weeks has confirmed it.”

Arturia’s smile widened, knowing that he was referring to the incident from a couple of weeks before.

During one of their charity events, an unauthorized photograph of them had somehow been taken, making the headlines and travelling around the world faster than they had ever thought possible.

It was a rather innocent picture, of a very pregnant Arturia leaning into Gilgamesh’s loving embrace as they exchanged an intense look, but it had still been a private moment and it had therefore been quite the unwelcome breach of privacy.

Sakura – who had been at the event together with them because it was about children’s care and she had specialized as a children’s nurse – had remained in one corner of the room throughout the evening and merely observed the group of people around her. She had not noticed anyone with a camera, but she had observed where the most influential people had been standing, and therefore had had the rather good idea to study the angle from which the photo had been taken.

Combining that with her precise memory of the faces of the people at the event, she had identified the person responsible for the picture and loyally informed the Uruk couple of her suspicions.

Arturia knew that Gilgamesh had very much appreciated the girl’s efforts, not to mention her spontaneous offer of help when they had needed someone to look after their children in the past.

Therefore, after delivering their punishment on the culprit – who had taken and sold that picture to make money but had soon found out that he was going to have to pay the ugly price for it – he had agreed with his wife on the middle name for their future daughter.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

At Dagon’s delivery, Enkidu walked into the room, holding young Cadwal’s hand and carrying little Maeve, who was asking for Mama and Papa, as it had been a few hours now since she had last seen them. Aela, who considered herself grown since she was almost five years old, proudly walked in front of everyone and reached her parents first.

As Arturia took Maeve into her arms – with a little difficulty due to her huge belly – and welcomed Cadwal, who crawled onto the bed, and kissed Aela’s forehead, Gilgamesh ruffled his elder children’s hair before glancing at Enkidu.

“Where’s Dianne?”

His best friend grinned and lowered his voice.

“Shopping with Mother.” With the same conspiratorial tone, he added, “She wants to get presents for all her younger siblings.”

A flicker of fond amusement crossed Gilgamesh’s eyes, being able to guess fairly accurately what they were going to buy. In some way or another, his mother had found out that his wife seemed to be secretly fond of lion dolls, and it appeared that all their children had inherited her preference, which meant that that was likely what Dianne intended to buy.

Resigning himself to the fact that their house was going to be filled with those stuffed toys, he then leaned forward to relieve Arturia from the weight of Maeve and Cadwal, as he had noticed a slight wince of pain appear on her face. His daughter snuggled happily into his arms while his son, after receiving permission, enthusiastically climbed onto his back, admiring the view from so high up.

However, Enkidu had noticed Arturia’s discomfort as well, and knowing that it was caused by contractions, was quick to retrieve all three kids and make his way to the door. He promised that they were all going to play together in the room outside, where Kariya was already waiting – ready to face Gilgamesh’s wrath when he was going to have to leave his wife’s side for a brief while – and where Irisviel was going to join them as soon as she finished work.

As soon as their children were gone, Arturia gripped her husband’s hand tightly, the pain of yet another contraction making her grit her teeth. It was however a brief one, and she soon relaxed somewhat.

Gilgamesh observed her carefully. Knowing that it had often been helpful in the past, he asked, “Do you feel like walking around a bit?”

She looked at him sleepily.

“Not really… I’m tired.” A yawn escaped her, and he smirked at her.

Leaning forward, he sat on the bed next to her and held her body close to his.

“Rest, my love.”

His lips pressed a tender but deep kiss to hers, and even as she dozed off, she smiled.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

_The wishes of people become the brilliant light_

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

“So what do you think, Uncle Gilgamesh?”

Fifteen-year-old Shirou stared at the blond man in front of him expectantly, having just finished talking about his decision to study electronic engineering.

Gilgamesh was silent for a moment, his crimson eyes lost in the distance as he considered his response.

Then he calmly replied, “As long as you are confident it’s your path, you should follow it.”

The redheaded boy nodded and beamed widely, thrilled, and Gilgamesh directed him an approving look. Shirou then tilted his head to the side.

“I’m glad to be able to talk with you, Uncle. You and Auntie Ria are always kind to me, no matter how foolish my questions are.” He smiled slightly. “And to think that ten years ago, you didn’t even call me by my name…” He leaned forward from his seat on the couch, suddenly curious. “You were never cruel to me, but you suddenly became much kinder to me a few years ago. May I ask what made that happen?”

He was taken aback when a rare smile appeared on his uncle’s face, and Gilgamesh stood up suddenly, walking towards the desk.

They were in his study at the Uruk household and they had been sitting on the couches. The interior decoration of the room had remained unchanged for the most part, but there was a smaller version of Millais’s famous _Ophelia Portrait_ hanging from the wall now, one Arturia had chosen for her husband’s birthday just a few months before. Gilgamesh wasn’t overly fond of art, but as he had not forgotten their discussions about that particular painting, he had not grumbled over the addition to the décor.

Shirou followed him with his eyes, confused, and did not notice how the blond man gave a very fond glance to a particular picture sitting on the desk, which had been there for several years.

“It’s rather simple, actually,” Gilgamesh casually informed him. “In some ways, it’s thanks to you that I received one of my beloved wife’s first presents. And that is something I will never forget, Shirou.”

He inclined his head briefly, and the boy knew it was a dismissal. Used to his uncle’s behaviour, he stood up, nodding back before leaving the room and wondering if he should ask Auntie Ria to explain what he had meant.

Upon reflection, however, he determined that it was best to leave the strange matter be and, hearing a faint sound coming from the room downstairs, went to assist his sister Taiga, who was teaching young Maeve how to play the piano with his mother’s assistance.

Shirou inwardly smiled at the endearing scene, knowing that all of his cousins were learning how to play, but Maeve was the one currently most committed to it.

Rin was sitting on the couch, surrounded by the countless lion dolls that, on Uncle Enkidu’s suggestion, Grandma Ninsun had bought for them – and which Shirou had learned Auntie Ria secretly loved as much as the children did – reading a book while holding baby Dagon close to her.

There was no sign of the others but, since the window was open and quite some noise was coming from outside, it wasn’t hard to guess that Illya, Cadwal, Aela and Dianne were probably playing in the garden.

Uncle Kariya was at work, but this time without Sakura. Shirou thought about it with both excitement and slight melancholy because she had moved to the US just a few months before, to work there for a while in order to improve her English. One of Uncle Gilgamesh’s business partners, Iskandar, had offered her a place to stay, and both his wife Medusa and his son Waver had soon become very fond of Sakura, easily welcoming her into their family.

Seeing Auntie Ria enter the room to tell them that dinner was almost ready, Shirou distracted his thoughts away from his older sister’s life as he was again reminded of his uncle’s odd reply. He contemplated his options.

Pushing his slight hesitation aside, he decided to ask his aunt about it.

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

In his study, Gilgamesh finished going through the last files he had to sign, and then made his way to the bedroom.

He passed through the private living room that he and his wife preferred, which now proudly displayed several exact copies of Arturia’s favourite Hokusai prints, which he had purchased for her on their second wedding anniversary and on which he let his eyes linger for a moment.

He couldn’t help thinking of how Arturia’s expression had lit up in delight when she had first seen them – and how it still did every time she looked at them fondly – before going to open a locked drawer in what was still called ‘his side of the room’, although it was now only said teasingly.

With a small grin, he retrieved and opened an oddly shaped folder, eyes scanning its contents raptly.

“Gilgamesh? The housekeepers are done and dinner is ready–”

Arturia interrupted herself when she noticed the folder he was holding, and he saw that she looked at once slightly amused, slightly exasperated and slightly self-conscious.

“You don’t go through that photo album often,” she remarked, coming closer to him. “Is this because of what Shirou said earlier?”

He nodded, not really surprised. Their nephew was an inquisitive boy, and since his behaviour in the study must have been strange to him, it was no surprise that he had mentioned it to his aunt.

Arturia’s hands came to rest on his shoulders.

“I told him about the pictures I framed,” she said as Gilgamesh took out some of his favourite photos. “He was quite surprised, but also very pleased.”

She was silent for a while, but then she leaned forward, focusing on a specific picture. “I like this one the best.”

A few times, Ninsun had managed to persuade – or coerce, depending on the point of view – Arturia to model for her, even during her pregnancies. Arturia had eventually relented because it was obviously something very important to her mother-in-law, but only on two conditions: the photos were to remain private, and Gilgamesh was to be part of the modelling.

He had been, to her chagrin, only too happy to oblige her, and Ninsun had been even more elated at the idea of designing matching outfits for them. Furthermore, Ninsun had immediately agreed to always take the pictures herself, so that no one else would be involved in the photo album of their family.

The picture Arturia was indicating was from a few months before, taken in their garden just days after Dagon’s birth. Arturia was sitting down in the grass, holding the new-born baby, while Gilgamesh had his arms around her, keeping them both close, while their other children were standing around them, grinning widely. There were also Enkidu with his girlfriend and Irisviel’s whole family, not to mention Ninsun herself – since it was one of the very first photos they had taken with the self-timer.

Gilgamesh smirked at her choice, and lifted the folder with one arm as he pulled his wife into his lap with the other. After kissing her lovingly, he shuffled through the other pictures briefly.

“While the photo with our entire family is undoubtedly one of the best, I prefer the ones where I can see _you_ more,” he told her bluntly, and ignored her minimal blush by showing her the collection of pictures only portraying the two of them.

She huffed in half-hearted indignation, and he grinned widely at her.

“In any case,” he went on, with just a hint of smugness, “my absolute favourite remains the real you.”

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

_Life plays the whole sky’s chorus_

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

“Papa, how did you and Mama fall in love?”

Gilgamesh held back a strange smile when he heard that question coming from his second-eldest daughter. He had actually _expected _his children to start asking about that subject; long before, he had after all promised to Arturia that _he_ was going to be the one to tell them about their history.

Speaking of his wife, she was currently in another room downstairs, discussing with the staff the best way to clean without compromising the security devices that had recently been installed around the house. The press’s fascination with the Uruk couple had increased at an alarming speed with every child who had been born and, instead of losing interest after a while, they had become more obstinately persisting.

Arturia had asked him to keep the children upstairs until she was completely certain that there was no danger of being monitored or recorded on the ground floor, as they were both extremely protective of their privacy. The upper floor had already been secured several years before, as they obviously would not have appreciated being spied on during their, well, more _private _moments.

Considering that right now all his five children were looking at him expectantly, Gilgamesh decided that telling them this story wasn’t a bad idea at all, as it would keep them occupied and enlighten them about their parents’ past at the same time.

“That’s a rather long story, but it’s important for you to hear it nonetheless,” he replied calmly, taking a seat, while the children came slightly closer, listening intently.

Aela, unable to wait, asked another question, “Did you meet at the office?”

“Yes, we did,” he replied with a faint smirk as he recalled the first time he had seen the woman who was later going to become his wife. “Your mother was at Uruk Enterprises for a job interview.”

“Was she already expecting me?” Dianne chimed in.

He held back both a snort and a smirk.

“No, we met several years before such a thing was even planned.”

“Did you love her immediately?”

Such a question would have made sense coming from Aela, who was the most romantic and who had first brought up the subject after all, but it was instead serious Cadwal who asked this.

“Of course not!” Maeve replied, shaking her head in disapproval. “Love is not like those fake princes and princesses movies!”

“Indeed I did not,” Gilgamesh acknowledged easily. “But I did know that she was remarkable, and she caught my interest.”

“‘Caught interest’? What does that mean?” young Dagon asked, frowning.

“It means that she was interesting enough for Papa not to ignore her,” Aela translated without hesitation.

“Exactly,” her father replied, hiding another smirk. “Love at first sight is a nice idea, but real love needs time. I had to get to know your mother first, to understand what kind of person she is, in order to fall in love with her.”

“And when did I get into Mama’s belly?” Dianne insisted.

“Much later, because your mother wished to wait a little while.”

“But why? Why did she not become pregnant immediately?”

As usual, even though he was talking to his children, Gilgamesh was direct and blunt.

“Because you children aren’t always lovely and especially when you’re very young you need a lot of attention. Your mother wanted to have the time and the maturity to give you all the love you deserve, and in the years before you were born, we were too busy with work and travelling, much more than now.”

The children seemed to ponder over this rather earnestly for a while, at least until Cadwal asked, with a contemplative expression, “Papa, when did you know that you loved Mama?”

At this, Gilgamesh smiled, and his expression was so uncharacteristic that all his children – even little Dagon who had begun to lose interest – stared at him in amazement.

“I knew whenever I looked at her and felt content to just be in her presence, and I knew when I first saw her being happy when she was together with me. But,” his expression turned more serious as he replied to the question, “even though I knew, I didn’t _realize_ it until the day when I was reminded that I could lose her.”

He deliberately kept it vague, as he knew that Enkidu was looking forward to telling his nephews and nieces the story about his accident himself, and was pleased when Aela asked, eager to know more, “Why exactly did you love Mama though?”

He smirked, amused by the various memories that flashed through his mind.

“There are many reasons, but one I recall vividly is when, after a long time of knowing her, I found out that she was actually capable of smiling at me.”

Seemingly oblivious to the irony of the statement, Maeve questioned, very interested, “And after that, we were all born, right? How did we all get in Mama’s belly? How did you and Mama put us in there?”

Gilgamesh grinned widely.

“Now _that_ is the interesting part–”

“Very well, I think this is enough,” Arturia interrupted, entering the room with her face flushed scarlet. “Everything is fine downstairs, so we can all go prepare dinner now.”

But while the temptation of cooking food was great, something else caught the children’s attention first.

“Mama is blushing!” Aela squealed, delighted.

Cadwal frowned.

“Why do you blush, Mama? Should Papa not have told us these things?”

She shook her head, her face holding a gentle expression.

“That’s not the case. You have the right to know, and some years ago, we did decide that your father would be the one to tell you this story. But there are some details that are not for your ears.”

Dianne pouted slightly, staring at her mother while following her down the stairs.

“Those things that the teachers in school tell us we will only find out when we grow up?”

“No, nothing like that,” Arturia replied, making a mental note to have a word with those teachers and knowing that soon she was indeed going to explain, at least to her eldest child, where babies came from. “There are some things that you will not know even after you grow up.”

Dianne wasn’t ready to let the subject drop so easily. Thanks to Arturia and Gilgamesh’s stern decisions from the very beginning, while they made sure their children wanted for nothing they might need, they did not allow them to be spoilt either. Not even Enkidu, Iri, Kariya and Sakura – who had moved back to Japan with her fiancée, whom she had met in the US – were given permission to indulge them too much; Ninsun was an exception, but her son had still given her a few rules to make sure she did not exaggerate in spoiling her grandkids.

However, that did not mean that they couldn’t be persistent.

“Why, Mama?” the eldest therefore questioned.

Arturia gave a rare, full smile as her husband’s arm casually came to rest on her waist, pulling her close to him, touching her wedding ring fleetingly and kissing her cheek as the children filled the kitchen after them. They all let out loud yelps, mortified by their parents’ open display of affection.

Arturia’s smile became, if possible, even wider, and her expression seemed to brighten the entire room.

“Because, dearest children, some things are private, and will remain between your father and myself.”

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

…

*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*”*

…

...

...

The END.

**Author's Note:**

> This part concludes my modern-day universe about Arturia and Gilgamesh :) I sincerely hope you enjoyed reading it!!  
I very much doubt I'll go back to it, as I feel it's concluded the way it is; should I change my mind though, I'll simply add another chapter to this collection. I had in fact originally planned a scene at the celebration of Arturia's 50th birthday, but I ultimately decided against it - it would have been unnecessary.  
By the way, I'm however _never_ going to tell you who eventually won the drinking contest between Arturia and Gilgamesh :P  
Thank you, truly, for reading this story!!!!!!! :D :D :D :D


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